Mounting apparatus and method for cylinder position sensor

ABSTRACT

A method and apparatus for detecting the position of a rod member of a cylinder assembly are provided. The cylinder assembly may have a cylinder body with a cylinder chamber therein, a gland member disposed within the cylinder chamber, and a rod member movably arranged within the cylinder chamber and a rod opening of the gland member. The method may include moving the gland member within the cylinder chamber to substantially align a gland aperture of the gland member with a cylinder aperture of the cylinder body; substantially fixing the gland member relative the cylinder body; positioning a position sensor within at least one of the cylinder aperture and the gland aperture; moving the rod member within the rod opening of the gland member and the cylinder chamber of the cylinder body; and operating the position sensor to detect the position of the rod member.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates generally to a mount for a position sensorand, more particularly, to a cylinder assembly with a position sensormounted thereto.

BACKGROUND

Expansible chamber hydraulic cylinders having moveable piston-and-rodassemblies therein are widely used on industrial, earthmoving, andmaterial handling machines and vehicles. It may be advantageous for sucha machine or vehicle to include an automatic control system forautomatically controlling the extension or retraction of apiston-and-rod assembly within a hydraulic cylinder so that partially ortotally automatic work operations may be performed. In one type ofautomatic control system, a position sensor may be attached to ahydraulic cylinder to determine the position of the piston-and-rodassembly within the cylinder. One challenge with using such a positionsensor is creating a robust, accurate, and affordable mount and mountingmethod for coupling the position sensor with the hydraulic cylinder.

International Patent Application No. PCT/FI93/00285, InternationalPublication No. WO 95/01510, discloses a hydraulic cylinder with meansfor determining the position of a piston rod relative to a cylindersleeve. The means consist of (i) optically readable marks provided onthe surface of the piston rod and (ii) a reading device for reading themarks. The reading device is supported on the cylinder sleeve and ispositioned in a mechanically protected structure, which constitutes partof a sealing/bearing end piece of the cylinder.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,455,509, issued to Semura et al., discloses a device formounting a position-detecting sensor to a hydraulic cylinder. Semuradiscloses a piston rod with a magnetic scale formed on the outer surfacethereof and a magnetic sensor mounted on a cylinder head proximate themagnetic scale for detecting the magnetic scale and determining theposition of the piston rod. The sensor is mounted on a block, and theblock is mounted on the head of the cylinder by a plurality of bolts.

Prior sensor mounting devices and methods may be improved by providingbetter arrangements and methods for mounting a sensor in properalignment with detectable features formed on the rod of a cylinderassembly. For example, if (i) detectable features are disposed along thelength of a rod member, (ii) the rod member is assembled in apredetermined rotational orientation within a cylinder body, and (iii) asensor is mounted in a predetermined orientation on a head or glandmember, the gland member must be assembled in a predetermined rotationalorientation relative the cylinder body in order for the sensor to beproperly rotationally aligned with the detectable features of the rod.However, when a threaded gland member is threaded into a threaded end ofa cylinder body, the threaded gland member is typically threaded verytightly into the end of the cylinder body so that a frictionalengagement is created between a flange portion of the gland member andthe end of the cylinder body. The frictional engagement creates africtional force sufficient to hold the gland member in positionrelative the cylinder body during operation of the cylinder assembly.The final rotational position of the gland member relative the cylinderbody (and relative the detectable features of the rod) is oftendifficult to predict or predetermine since (i) the final position of thegland member relative the cylinder body will ultimately depend upon thearrangement of the threads of the gland member relative the flangeportion thereof and relative the threads of the cylinder body, and (ii)it is often difficult and/or expensive to manufacture threaded glandsand threaded cylinder bodies so that the threads thereof areconsistently arranged and engaged exactly as desired.

Further, prior sensor mounting devices and methods may be improved byproviding better arrangements and methods for maintaining the alignmentof a sensor with detectable features on a cylinder assembly duringoperation of the cylinder assembly.

The present invention is directed at overcoming one or more problems ordisadvantages associated with prior sensor-mounting devices and methods.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In one aspect of the present invention, a cylinder assembly is provided.The cylinder assembly may include a cylinder body having alongitudinally arranged cylinder chamber therein, and having a cylinderaperture in the cylinder body, the cylinder aperture intersecting thecylinder chamber. The cylinder assembly may further include a glandmember having a rod opening therein, the gland member being disposedwithin the cylinder chamber of the cylinder body, the gland memberhaving a gland aperture therein, the gland aperture intersecting the rodopening, and the gland aperture being arranged in substantial alignmentwith the cylinder aperture. The cylinder assembly may also include a rodmember movably arranged within the cylinder chamber and the rod openingand a position sensor disposed within at least one of the cylinderaperture and the gland aperture.

In another aspect of the present invention, a cylinder assembly isprovided. The cylinder assembly may include a cylinder body having alongitudinally arranged cylinder chamber therein, a first threaded areaon the cylinder body, and a cylinder aperture in the cylinder body, thecylinder aperture intersecting the cylinder chamber. The cylinderassembly may further include a gland member having a rod openingtherein, the gland member being disposed within the cylinder chamber ofthe cylinder body, the gland member having a second threaded area on thegland member, the second threaded area being threadedly engaged with thefirst threaded area of the cylinder body. The cylinder assembly mayfurther include a rod member movably arranged within the cylinderchamber of the cylinder body and the rod opening of the gland member,the rod having one or more detectable features disposed along the lengthof the rod member; a position sensor attached to at least one of thecylinder body and the gland member and arranged in general alignmentwith a path of the one or more detectable features, the position sensorbeing operable to detect the one or more detectable features; and astake member arranged within the cylinder aperture and engaging thegland member, the stake member being operable to substantiallyrotationally fix the gland member relative the cylinder body.

In a further aspect of the invention, a method for detecting theposition of a rod member of a cylinder assembly may be provided. Thecylinder assembly may have (i) a cylinder body with a longitudinallyarranged cylinder chamber in the cylinder body and a cylinder aperturein the cylinder body, the cylinder aperture intersecting the cylinderchamber, (ii) a gland member disposed within the cylinder chamber andincluding a rod opening in the gland member and a gland aperture in thegland member, the gland aperture intersecting the rod opening, and (iii)a rod member movably arranged within the cylinder chamber of thecylinder body and the rod opening of the gland member. The method mayinclude moving the gland member within the cylinder chamber of thecylinder body to substantially align the gland aperture of the glandmember with the cylinder aperture of the cylinder body; substantiallyfixing the gland member relative the cylinder body; positioning aposition sensor within at least one of the cylinder aperture and thegland aperture; moving the rod member within the rod opening of thegland member and the cylinder chamber of the cylinder body; andoperating the position sensor to detect the position of the rod member.

In another aspect of the invention, a method for detecting the positionof a rod member of a cylinder assembly may be provided. The cylinderassembly may have (i) a cylinder body with a longitudinally arrangedcylinder chamber in the cylinder body and a cylinder aperture in thecylinder body, the cylinder aperture intersecting the cylinder chamber,(ii) a gland member disposed within the cylinder chamber and including arod opening in the gland member, and (iii) a rod member having one ormore detectable features thereon, the rod member being movably arrangedwithin the cylinder chamber of the cylinder body and the rod opening ofthe gland member. The method may include moving the gland member withinthe cylinder chamber of the cylinder body; positioning a position sensorin an opening of the gland member; substantially aligning the positionsensor with a path of the one or more detectable features of the rodmember; substantially fixing the gland member relative the cylinder bodyvia a stake member that is (i) disposed within the cylinder aperture ofthe cylinder body and (ii) arranged in engagement with the gland member;moving the rod member within the rod opening of the gland member and thecylinder chamber of the cylinder body; and operating the position sensorto detect the position of the rod member as a function of the one ormore detectable features.

It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description andthe following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory onlyand are not restrictive of the invention, as claimed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute apart of this specification, illustrate exemplary embodiments or featuresof the invention and, together with the description, serve to explainthe principles of the invention. In the drawings,

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a cylinder assembly constructed andoperable according to an embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of a cylinder assembly constructed andoperable according to another embodiment of the present invention.

Although the drawings depict exemplary embodiments or features of thepresent invention, the drawings are not necessarily to scale, andcertain features may be exaggerated in order to better illustrate andexplain the present invention. The exemplifications set out hereinillustrate exemplary embodiments or features of the invention and suchexemplifications are not to be construed as limiting the scope of theinvention in any manner.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Reference will now be made in detail to embodiments or features of theinvention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings. Wherever possible, the same or corresponding reference numberswill be used throughout the drawings to refer to the same orcorresponding parts.

Referring to FIG. 1, an exemplary embodiment of the present inventionincludes a cylinder assembly 10 having a cylinder body 14, a glandmember 18, a rod member 26, and a position sensor 30.

The cylinder body 14 provides a longitudinally arranged cylinder chamber34 therein for receipt of the rod member 26. A gland opening 38 isprovided at one end 42 of the cylinder chamber 34 and is configured andarranged for receipt of the gland member 18. The cylinder body 14includes a radially outer wall 14 a and a radially inner wall 14 b.Threads 46 a may be provided on the inner wall 14 b within the cylinderchamber 34 for engagement with threads 46 b on the gland member 18.

A cylinder aperture 50 may be provided within the cylinder body 14proximate the end 42 of the cylinder chamber 34. The cylinder aperture50 of FIG. 1 is a throughbore or opening, such as a generallycylindrical throughbore, within the cylinder body 14 and intersects thecylinder chamber 34. The cylinder aperture 50 shown in FIG. 1 isgenerally arranged in a radial direction relative the cylinder chamber34. It should be appreciated that the cylinder aperture 50 may bearranged in a substantially predetermined position on the cylinder body14. An internal portion of the cylinder aperture 50 may have a threadedarea 54 a thereon for engaging complimentary threads 54 b on a sensorbody or sensor housing 58, which encloses the sensor 30. It should beappreciated that, in the absence of a sensor housing 58, complimentarythreads 54 b may be disposed on the sensor 30 itself.

Referring again to FIG. 1, a generally cylindrical gland member 18 maybe disposed within the gland opening 38 and cylinder chamber 34 of thecylinder body 14 and may be sealingly engaged with the inner wall 14 bof the cylinder body 14. The gland member 18 has a rod opening therein,such as a longitudinal throughbore 70, configured for slidable receiptof the rod member 26. A radially outer surface 74 of the gland member 18may provide threads 46 b for engaging the threads 46 a of the inner wall14 b of the cylinder body 14. A seal groove 78 may also be providedalong the outer surface of the gland member 18, and a seal 82 may beprovided therein for ensuring a sealing engagement between the glandmember 18 and the inner wall 14 b of the cylinder body 14. Grooves 86,90, 94, 98 may be provided along an internal wall 102 of the glandmember 18 for seating a wear ring 106, a buffer seal 110, a rod seal114, and a wiper seal 118, respectively. It should be appreciated thatseals 114, 118 may be configured to engage the outer surface of the rod26 to keep the area along the rod 26 between the two seals 114, 118 freefrom debris or other substances that may interfere with operation of thesensor 30. The gland member 18 may have a flange portion 122 disposedoutside of the gland opening 38 of the cylinder body 14 and extendingradially outward, for example radially beyond the inner wall 14 b of thecylinder body 14.

A gland aperture 126 may be provided within the gland member 18. Thegland aperture 126 of FIG. 1 forms a sensor opening within the glandmember 18 for receiving the sensor 30. The gland aperture 126 isgenerally arranged in a radial direction relative the cylinder chamber34 and intersects the rod opening 70 of the gland member 18. The glandaperture 126 may be arranged in substantial rotational and longitudinalalignment with the cylinder aperture 50 so that the sensor 30 may beinserted into the cylinder aperture 50 and the gland aperture 126. Inthe embodiment of FIG. 1, the gland aperture 126 is a generallycylindrical throughbore in the gland member 18 and has a largercross-sectional area than the cylinder aperture 50.

The rod member 26 is slidably arranged within the rod opening 70 of thegland member 18 and is movably arranged within the cylinder chamber 34of the cylinder body 14, where the rod member 26 may be operablyconnected with a piston (not shown), as is known in the art, to form apiston-and-rod assembly. One or more detectable features 174, such asbarcode markings, may be disposed in a substantially predeterminedrotational orientation along the length of the rod 26. It should beappreciated that the rod member 26, and therefore the detectablefeatures 174, may be arranged in a substantially predeterminedrotational orientation relative the cylinder body 14, and morespecifically relative the cylinder aperture 50, so that the path of thedetectable features 174 will be substantially rotationally aligned withthe cylinder aperture 50. It should further be appreciated that, in oneembodiment, even though the rod member 26 may be arranged in asubstantially predetermined rotational orientation relative the cylinderbody 14, a generally small or otherwise insignificant rotation of therod member 26 relative the cylinder body 14 may be permissible so longas a path of the detectable features 174 remains substantiallyrotationally aligned with the cylinder aperture 50.

As shown in FIG. 1, the position sensor 30 is mounted to the cylinderbody 14 in general alignment with the path of the one or more detectablefeatures 174. The sensor 30 may be operable to detect the one or moredetectable features 174 and responsively generate a signal indicative ofthe position of the rod 26 as a function of the one or more detectablefeatures 174. In the embodiment of FIG. 1, the sensor 30 is enclosedwithin a sensor housing 58, is arranged within the cylinder aperture 50and the gland aperture 126, and is therefore arranged in substantialalignment with the cylinder aperture 50 and the gland aperture 126.

Referring to FIG. 2, an alternative embodiment of the present inventionincludes a cylinder assembly 10′ having a cylinder body 14′, a glandmember 18′, a rod member 26, and a position sensor 30. The elements ofthe embodiment of FIG. 2 are generally like the elements described abovewith respect to FIG. 1 with the general exceptions described below.

The cylinder aperture 50′ shown in FIG. 2 is configured to hold a setscrew 194. For example, threads 54 a′ may be provided within thecylinder aperture 50′ for engagement with complimentary threads 54 b′formed on the outer surface of the set screw 194, which is arrangedwithin the cylinder aperture 50′ to act as a stake member with respectto the cylinder body 14′ and the gland member 18′.

The gland member 18′ shown in FIG. 2 includes a stake slot 182 therein.The stake slot 182 is arranged in substantial rotational andlongitudinal alignment with the cylinder aperture 50′ so that the setscrew 194 may be inserted into the cylinder aperture 50′ to engage thestake slot 182. In the embodiment of FIG. 2, the stake slot 182 is alongitudinally arranged groove on the gland member 18′ and islongitudinally longer than the diameter of the cylinder aperture 50′.

A gland aperture, such as a generally cylindrical throughbore 126′, maybe formed within the flange portion 122′ of the gland member 18′ to forma sensor opening for receiving a sensor 30. The gland aperture 126′ ofFIG. 2 is generally arranged in a radial direction relative the cylinderchamber 34 and intersects the rod opening 70 of the gland member 18′.The gland aperture 126′ may be arranged in substantial rotationalalignment with the cylinder aperture 50′. It should be appreciated thatthe gland aperture 126′ may be arranged in a substantially predeterminedposition on the gland member 18′ with respect to the stake slot 182. Aninternal portion of the gland aperture 126′ may have a threaded area 204a thereon for engaging complimentary threads 54 b on the sensor body orsensor housing 58, which encloses the sensor 30. It should beappreciated that, in the absence of a sensor housing 58, complimentarythreads 54 b may be disposed on the sensor 30 itself.

A groove 98′ may be provided along the internal wall 102 of the glandmember 18′ for seating a wiper seal 118′ therein. It should beappreciated that seals 114, 118′ may be configured to engage the outersurface of the rod 26 to keep the area along the rod 26 between the twoseals 114, 118′ free from debris or other substances that may interferewith operation of the sensor 30.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

The present invention provides an affordable and robust sensor mountoperable to accurately mount a position sensor to a hydraulic cylinder.

With specific reference to FIG. 1, the cylinder assemblies 10, 10′ ofFIGS. 1 and 2 may be assembled by placing the rod member 26 through therod opening 70 of the gland member 18 so that the buffer seal 110 androd seal 114 provide a sealing engagement between the rod member 26 andthe gland member 18. The rod member 26 may be inserted into the cylinderchamber 34 of the cylinder body 14 and rotated into a substantiallypredetermined rotational orientation relative the cylinder body 14. Thegland member 18 may be moved longitudinally into the gland opening 38and cylinder chamber 34 of the cylinder body 14, via rotation of thegland member 18 relative the cylinder body 14 and via engagement of thethreads 46 a, 46 b, so that the seal 82 is held in sealing engagementbetween the outer surface 74 of the gland member 18 and the inner wall14 b of the cylinder body 14. After the gland member 18 is sufficientlythreaded within the cylinder body 14 to create a sealing engagementbetween the gland member 18 and the inner wall 14 b of the cylinder body14 (via the seal 82), the gland member 18 may be further rotated withrespect to the cylinder body 14 until the gland aperture 126 issubstantially rotationally aligned (and longitudinally aligned, in theembodiment of FIG. 1) with the cylinder aperture 50. Since the glandaperture 126 of FIG. 1 has a larger cross-sectional area than thecylinder aperture 50, the gland member 18 of FIG. 1 can be threaded intothe cylinder body 14 so that the gland aperture 126 and cylinderaperture 50 may be substantially both rotationally and longitudinallyaligned even if the complimentary threads 46 a, 46 b are not machinedaccording to an extreme tolerance.

Referring again to the embodiment of FIG. 1, the sensor 30 and sensorhousing 58 may be threaded into the cylinder aperture 50, via thethreads 54 a on the cylinder aperture 50 and the threads 54 b on thesensor housing 58, until the sensor 30 and sensor housing 58 extend intothe gland aperture 126 in sufficient proximity to the rod member 26 sothat the sensor 30 may be operable to detect the one or more detectablefeatures 174 on the rod member 26. It should be appreciated that thesensor housing 58 (or in the absence of the housing 58, then the sensor30) of FIG. 1 acts as a stake member through engagement with thecylinder aperture 50 and the gland aperture 126 to prevent orsignificantly inhibit rotation of the gland member 18 relative thecylinder body 14. Thus, the gland member 18 shown in FIG. 1 issubstantially rotationally and longitudinally fixed relative thecylinder body 14 via the sensor housing 58 (or the sensor 30) (and thethreads 46 a, 46 b). It should be appreciated that since the sensorhousing 58 acts as a stake member to hold the gland member 18 inposition relative the cylinder body 14, the flange portion 122 of thegland member 18 need not be fully tightened against the end 178 of thecylinder body 14. This feature of the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 allowsthe gland member 18 to be held in its desired position relative thecylinder body 14 without relying on a tight frictional engagementbetween the flange portion 122 of the gland member 18 and the end 178 ofthe cylinder body 14, thereby reducing or eliminating a substantialreliance upon extreme accuracy in positioning/machining the threads 46a, 46 b to ensure proper alignment of the gland aperture 126 with thecylinder aperture 50.

Referring more specifically now to FIG. 2, during assembly after thegland member 18′ is sufficiently threaded within the cylinder body 14′to create a sealing engagement between the gland member 18′ and theinner wall 14 b of the cylinder body 14′ (via the seal 82), the glandmember 18′ may be further rotated with respect to the cylinder body 14′until the stake slot 182 of the gland member 18′ is substantiallyrotationally and longitudinally aligned with the cylinder aperture 50′.Since stake slot 182 is longitudinally longer than the cylinder aperture50′, the gland member 18′ can be threaded into the cylinder body 14′ sothat the stake slot 182 and cylinder aperture 50′ may be substantiallyboth rotationally and longitudinally aligned even if the complimentarythreads 46 a, 46 b are not machined according to an extreme tolerance.

The set screw 194 may be threaded into the cylinder aperture 50′, viathe threads 54 a′ on the cylinder aperture 50′ and the threads 54 b′ onthe set screw 194, until the set screw 194 extends into and engages thestake slot 182. It should be appreciated that the set screw 194 acts asa stake member through engagement with the cylinder aperture 50′ and thestake slot 182 to prevent or significantly inhibit rotation of the glandmember 18′ relative the cylinder body 14′. Thus, the gland member 18′shown in FIG. 2 is substantially rotationally and longitudinally fixedrelative the cylinder body 14′ via the set screw 194 (and the threads 46a, 46 b). It should be appreciated that since the set screw 194 acts asa stake member to hold the gland member 18′ in position relative thecylinder body 14′, the flange portion 122′ of the gland member 18′ neednot be fully tightened against the end 178′ of the cylinder body 14′.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 (and FIG. 2), the one or moredetectable features 174 are arranged in a substantially predeterminedorientation on the rod member 26; the rod member 26 is assembled in asubstantially predetermined rotational orientation relative the cylinderbody 14 (14′ in FIG. 2) and the cylinder aperture 50 (50′ in FIG. 2);the gland aperture 126 (or stake slot 182 in FIG. 2) is assembled in asubstantially predetermined orientation relative the cylinder aperture50 (50′); and the sensor 30 is arranged in a substantially predeterminedorientation relative the gland aperture 126 (or stake slot 182) andtherefore the cylinder aperture 50 (50′). As a result, the positionsensor 30 will be substantially rotationally aligned with a path of theone or more detectable features 174, and the position sensor 30 mayfunction properly by detecting the one or more detectable features 174and responsively generating a signal indicative of the position of therod 26 as a function of the one or more detectable features 174.

With specific reference again to FIG. 2, it should be appreciated that,during assembly when the gland member 18′ of FIG. 2 is sufficientlythreaded within the cylinder body 14′ to create a sealing engagementbetween the gland member 18′ and the inner wall 14 b of the cylinderbody 14′ (via the seal 82), the gland member 18′ may be further rotated,if necessary, with respect to the cylinder body 14′ until the sensor 30is substantially rotationally aligned with the path of the detectablefeatures 174 on the rod member 26. After such alignment of the sensor 30with the detectable features 174 of the rod member 26, the set screw 194may be applied to the gland member 18′ to substantially fix the glandmember 18′ relative the cylinder body 14′.

From the foregoing it will be appreciated that, although specificembodiments of the invention have been described herein for purposes ofillustration, various modifications may be made without deviating fromthe spirit or scope of the invention. Other embodiments of the inventionwill be apparent to those skilled in the art from consideration of thespecification and figures and practice of the invention disclosedherein. It is intended that the specification and disclosed examples beconsidered as exemplary only, with a true scope and spirit of theinvention being indicated by the following claims and their equivalents.Accordingly, the invention is not limited except as by the appendedclaims.

1. A cylinder assembly comprising: a cylinder body having alongitudinally arranged cylinder chamber therein, and having a cylinderaperture in the cylinder body, the cylinder aperture intersecting thecylinder chamber; and a gland member having a rod opening therein, thegland member being disposed within the cylinder chamber of the cylinderbody, the gland member having a gland aperture therein, the glandaperture intersecting the rod opening, and the gland aperture beingarranged in substantial alignment with the cylinder aperture; a rodmember movably arranged within the cylinder chamber and the rod opening;and a position sensor disposed within at least one of the cylinderaperture and the gland aperture.
 2. The cylinder assembly of claim 1,wherein the position sensor is arranged in substantial alignment withthe cylinder aperture and the gland aperture.
 3. The cylinder assemblyof claim 2, wherein the position sensor extends within both the cylinderaperture and the gland aperture.
 4. The cylinder assembly of claim 3,wherein the cylinder aperture and the gland aperture are arranged in agenerally radial direction relative the cylinder chamber.
 5. Thecylinder assembly of claim 1, wherein the gland member is substantiallyrotationally and longitudinally fixed relative the cylinder body.
 6. Thecylinder assembly of claim 5, including a stake member extending withinboth the cylinder aperture and the gland aperture and operable tosubstantially rotationally fix the gland member relative the cylinderbody.
 7. The cylinder assembly of claim 6, wherein the gland member isthreadedly engaged with the cylinder body.
 8. The cylinder assembly ofclaim 6, wherein the stake member is at least one of the sensor and asensor housing.
 9. The cylinder assembly of claim 1, wherein the glandmember is threadedly engaged with the cylinder body.
 10. The cylinderassembly of claim 1, wherein the gland aperture has a largercross-sectional area than the cylinder aperture.
 11. The cylinderassembly of claim 1, wherein the gland aperture is arranged insubstantial rotational alignment with the cylinder aperture.
 12. Thecylinder assembly of claim 1, wherein the gland aperture is arranged insubstantial rotational and longitudinal alignment with the cylinderaperture.
 13. A cylinder assembly comprising: a cylinder body having alongitudinally arranged cylinder chamber therein, a first threaded areaon the cylinder body, and a cylinder aperture in the cylinder body, thecylinder aperture intersecting the cylinder chamber; a gland memberhaving a rod opening therein, the gland member being disposed within thecylinder chamber of the cylinder body, the gland member having a secondthreaded area on the gland member, the second threaded area beingthreadedly engaged with the first threaded area of the cylinder body; arod member movably arranged within the cylinder chamber of the cylinderbody and the rod opening of the gland member, the rod member having oneor more detectable features disposed along the length of the rod member;a position sensor attached to at least one of the cylinder body and thegland member and arranged in general aligrnent with a path of the one ormore detectable features, the position sensor being operable to detectthe one or more detectable features; and a stake member arranged withinthe cylinder aperture and engaging the gland member, the stake memberbeing operable to substantially rotationally fix the gland memberrelative the cylinder body.
 14. The cylinder assembly of claim 13,wherein the stake member is at least one of the sensor and a sensorhousing.
 15. The cylinder assembly of claim 13, wherein the gland memberincludes a sensor opening, and the sensor opening is substantiallyrotationally and longitudinally aligned with the cylinder aperture. 16.The cylinder assembly of claim 13, wherein the gland member includes astake slot therein, and the stake member engages the stake slot.
 17. Thecylinder assembly of claim 16, wherein the stake slot is a groove thatis arranged in a generally longitudinal orientation on the gland member.18. The cylinder assembly of claim 16, wherein the sensor is attached tothe gland member in a substantially predetermined position relative thestake slot.
 19. The cylinder assembly of claim 18, wherein: the glandmember includes a sensor opening; and the sensor is mounted within thesensor opening.
 20. The cylinder assembly of claim 19, wherein thesensor opening is a generally radially arranged throughbore in the glandmember.
 21. A method for detecting the position of a rod member of acylinder assembly having (i) a cylinder body with a longitudinallyarranged cylinder chamber in the cylinder body and a cylinder aperturein the cylinder body, the cylinder aperture intersecting the cylinderchamber, (ii) a gland member disposed within the cylinder chamber andincluding a rod opening in the gland member and a gland aperture in thegland member, the gland aperture intersecting the rod opening, and (iii)a rod member movably arranged within the cylinder chamber of thecylinder body and the rod opening of the gland member, the methodcomprising: moving the gland member within the cylinder chamber of thecylinder body to substantially align the gland aperture of the glandmember with the cylinder aperture of the cylinder body; substantiallyfixing the gland member relative the cylinder body; positioning aposition sensor within at least one of the cylinder aperture and thegland aperture; moving the rod member within the rod opening of thegland member and the cylinder chamber of the cylinder body; andoperating the position sensor to detect the position of the rod member.22. The method of claim 21, wherein the step of moving the gland memberwithin the cylinder chamber of the cylinder body includes rotating thegland member relative the cylinder body.
 23. The method of claim 22,wherein the step of moving the gland member within the cylinder chamberof the cylinder body further includes moving the gland memberlongitudinally with respect to the cylinder body via an engagementbetween threads on the gland member with threads on the cylinder bodyuntil the gland aperture of the gland member is substantially alignedwith the cylinder aperture of the cylinder body.
 24. The method of claim23, wherein the step of substantially fixing the gland member relativethe cylinder body includes applying a stake member to the gland memberand the cylinder body to prevent or inhibit movement of the gland memberrelative the cylinder body.
 25. The method of claim 24, wherein the stepof applying a stake member includes inserting the stake member into thecylinder aperture.
 26. The method of claim 25, wherein the step ofapplying a stake member includes inserting the stake member into thegland aperture.
 27. The method of claim 21, wherein the step of movingthe gland member within the cylinder chamber of the cylinder body tosubstantially align the gland aperture of the gland member with thecylinder aperture of the cylinder body includes moving the gland memberwithin the cylinder chamber of the cylinder body to substantiallyrotationally align the gland aperture of the gland member with thecylinder aperture of the cylinder body.
 28. The method of claim 27,wherein the step of moving the gland member within the cylinder chamberof the cylinder body to substantially align the gland aperture of thegland member with the cylinder aperture of the cylinder body includesmoving the gland member within the cylinder chamber of the cylinder bodyto substantially rotationally and longitudinally align the glandaperture of the gland member with the cylinder aperture of the cylinderbody.
 29. A method for detecting the position of a rod member of acylinder assembly having (i) a cylinder body with a longitudinallyarranged cylinder chamber in the cylinder body and a cylinder aperturein the cylinder body, the cylinder aperture intersecting the cylinderchamber, (ii) a gland member disposed within the cylinder chamber andincluding a rod opening in the gland member, and (iii) a rod memberhaving one or more detectable features thereon, the rod member beingmovably arranged within the cylinder chamber of the cylinder body andthe rod opening of the gland member, the method comprising: moving thegland member within the cylinder chamber of the cylinder body;positioning at least one of a position sensor and a sensor housing ofthe position sensor in an opening of the gland member; substantiallyaligning the position sensor with a path of the one or more detectablefeatures of the rod member; substantially fixing the gland memberrelative the cylinder body via a stake member that is (i) disposedwithin the cylinder aperture of the cylinder body and (ii) arranged inengagement with the gland member; moving the rod member within the rodopening of the gland member and the cylinder chamber of the cylinderbody; and operating the position sensor to detect the position of therod member as a function of the one or more detectable features.
 30. Themethod of claim 29, wherein the stake member is at least one of theposition sensor and the sensor housing.
 31. The method of claim 29,including positioning at least one of the position sensor and the sensorhousing within the cylinder aperture.
 32. The method of claim 31,including: substantially aligning the opening in the gland member withthe cylinder aperture of the cylinder body.
 33. The method of claim 32,wherein the step of substantially aligning the opening in the glandmember with the cylinder aperture of the cylinder body includessubstantially rotationally aligning the opening in the gland member withthe cylinder aperture of the cylinder body.
 34. The method of claim 33,wherein the step of substantially aligning the opening in the glandmember with the cylinder aperture of the cylinder body includessubstantially rotationally and longitudinally aligning the opening inthe gland member with the cylinder aperture of the cylinder body. 35.The method of claim 29, including: substantially aligning the cylinderaperture of the cylinder body with a stake slot in the gland member; andinserting the stake member into the stake slot of the gland member. 36.The method of claim 29, wherein the step of moving the gland memberwithin the cylinder chamber of the cylinder body includes moving thegland member longitudinally with respect to the cylinder body via (i)rotation of the gland member relative the cylinder body and (ii) anengagement between threads on the gland member with threads on thecylinder body.